The NETA Public Media Awards honor members' work in education, community engagement, marketing/communications and content. Lakeshore Public Media is a finalist for its live community conversation about race following local protests after the George Floyd shooting, and for a locally produced feature on a neighborhood art gallery.
“We are thrilled that our work - showcasing some of the great stories to come out of Northwest Indiana and Chicago - has been nominated for these prestigious national awards,” said James A. Muhammad, President and CEO of Lakeshore Public Media.
With the exception of the overall excellence categories, stations compete within their appropriate divisions based on their station size. Awards will be judged by a group of expert panelists from within the public media system, as well as industry professionals working outside of public media.
The NETA Community Initiative Award is given to a station that brings attention to a specific critical issue which results in enhanced capacity to address the issue within the defined community. Lakeshore Public Media was nominated for its Race and Justice: Here and Now effort, a live conversation with community leaders, political figures and law enforcement that took place within a week surrounding the death of George Floyd in Minnesota.
“Our goal was to have a dialogue with the community and with government officials and law enforcement in a safe environment,” Muhammad stated. “It was an opportunity to engage in conversations that strive to improve understanding in order to move Northwest Indiana forward collectively.”
Lakeshore Public Media was also nominated in the Arts/Entertainment Content category for a segment of its Eye on the Arts program that spotlighted the Paul Henry’s Art Gallery in Hammond, and long-time art center challenged during the Coronavirus pandemic.
Eye on the Arts is a half hour program that showcases a diverse range of local artists, artistic organizations, events and stories, demonstrating the power of arts in people's lives, and how art and culture improve the quality of lives for residents throughout Northwest Indiana and Chicagoland. Eye on the Arts airs Wednesday at 7pm on Lakeshore PBS, and episodes can also be found online at lakeshorepbs.org/EOA.
This year saw a record number of entries from stations across the country as new categories were introduced recognizing excellence in podcasts and digital media use as well as awards in each category specific to the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“To be nominated against stations from all across the county validates our efforts and our long running commitment to serve our audience with quality storytelling,” Muhammad stated. “We are so incredibly proud of our team and the work they do every day.”
Winners will be announced at the 52nd Public Media Awards ceremony that will take place during the 2021 NETA Conference and CPB Thought Leader Forum being held virtually from January 25 – 28, 2021.
Lakeshore Public Media is a community-license public media organization that is the Northwest Indiana member of the Indiana Public Broadcasting Stations, serving Indiana’s second largest urban area through their Lakeshore PBS and Lakeshore Public Radio service.
Lakeshore PBS broadcasts its main channel over the air on 56, on Comcast on 17 or 21 (HD Channel 239), on Dish Network HD Channel 6320, AT&T U-verse HD Channel 1056 and DirecTV on 56, and online at lakeshorepbs.org. Lakeshore Public Radio can be heard on 89.1 FM and streaming online at lakeshorepublicradio.org.
Lakeshore Public Media provides quality local and original programming that educates, enlightens, and informs. Lakeshore Public Media chooses the best of NPR and PBS and other public media providers, broadcasting to millions of homes throughout Northwest Indiana, Chicago and its surrounding suburbs. Lakeshore Public Radio can be heard on 89.1fm. Lakeshore PBS broadcasts its main channel over the air on 56, on Comcast on 17 or 21 (HD Channel 239), on RCN Cable on 44, on Dish Network (HD Channel 6320), AT&T U-verse (HD Channel 1056) and DirecTV on 56.